bonell



(No Model.) y 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

G. E. BONELL. Compound Telegraph Line. No. 240,371. Patented April 19,1881.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE E. BONELL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF, JOHN M. SMYTH, AND GEORGE B. SWIFT, OF SAME PLACE.

COMPOUND TELEGRAPH-LINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 240,371, dated April 19, 1881. Application filed October 14, 1880. (No model.)

To-all 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE E. BoNELL, residing at Chicago,in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, and a citizen of the United States, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Underground Telegraph Lines, of which the following is a full description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- 1o Figure lis a top or plan view of a part of two sections coupled together; Fig. 2, a longitudinal section on line xx of Fig. l; Fig. 3, a cross-section on line y y of Figs. l or 2; Fig. 4, a detached view of a wire-coupling, full size for a No. 16 copper wire; Fig. 5, afront elevation of a test-box 5 Fig. 6, a vertical section of the test-box; Fig. 7, a cross-section on line zz of Fig. 6, and Fig.8 a plan showing the method of turning a corner.

The object ot' this invention is to insulate underground wires 5 to insulate them in such a manner that a large number of wires can be made to occupy a small space; to prevent induction, or the passage of electricity from one wire to another, so that each wire may be separately used; to incase the wires in wood or metal, and, when of wood, preserve its insulating or non-conducting qualities by giving it an impervious coating or partial coating an d partial saturation 5 to protect each wire in the tube separately and insulate each wire; to protect the glass tubing by a non-conductin g composition filling all ot' the hollows of the wood and of the glass tubing, and make a cheap and efficient connection for the sections; and its nature consists in coating or partly coatingand partly saturating wood tubing with the waterproofing material hereinafter described 5 in casing the wires with a protective coating; in 40 insulating each wire by separate glass tubing;

in filling the glass tubing with anon-conducting coating; in iillin g the space or spaces around the glass tubing with a non-conducting composition; and in the several parts, arrangements, and combination ot' parts hereinafter set forth and claimed as new.

In the drawings, A A indicate sections of wooden tubing, the adjoining ends of two sections only being shown; B, the joint casing or 5o covering; C, the filling composition; D, an

opening by which the space between the section ends can be iilled; E, a test-box, and F its door; a, the wires; b, the glass tubing for the body of each wire; c, sections ot' larger glass tubing, by which the joints or joinings a of the wire or wires arecovered and protected;

d, brass or other tubes for connecting the wires;

e, set or binding screws; f, tube for groundwire connection, and g ground-wire.

The wooden tubing Ais common pump-tub- 6o ing, except that both ends ot each section are male, instead of being male and female, as used for pumps, and both ends may be made square, or without a reduced projection 5 but the form shown is preferred. These wooden sections are made of various lengths and dimensions, according to local wants or demands.

A common size-four inches in cross-section, with a two-inch bore-will be sufiicient for fifty wires. 7o

When curved sections are desired for turning corners, changing direction, or bringing the wires up into the test-boxes, or for other connection, they are most conveniently made in box form, so that the glass tubing and wires can be laid in from the side; but the glass tubing can be annealed and bent so as to be put in at the ends, or the glass tubing maybe put over the wire in short sections or pieces.

When the sections A are in place the joints 8o are surrounded byaboxing, B,whichis screwed in separate parts direct to the section A, or it may be made in form for two or three sides and then secured to the sections or around them. The cover or upper part of the boxing B is provided with a hole, D, through which the space between the section ends is lled with composition.

To render the wood of the tubing and boX- ing impervious to water or moisture, they are 9o coated or saturated with a composition composed of mutton tallow, tive pounds; lard, two and one-half pounds; and rosin, ten pounds. These proportions are the best, but they may be varied considerably, according as a coating with little saturation or a slight coating with more saturation may be desired. This compound is applied hot, preferably by dipping the wood in a suitably prepared vat, givingit some time; but it may be applied by pouring roo or in other suitable manner. This coating keeps the wood dry and to a large extent prevents it from absorbing sufficient moisture to become a conductor; but this is only one of the provisions for protecting` and insulating` the wires, and I do not limit the other parts of my invention to the use of wooden tubing, as they may be used in connection with lead or iron pipes or tubing, and when metal is used for tubing it may be left without exterior coating, or common coatings for preserving metal may be applied.

The wires a are copper wires and of the ordinary sizes, varying from No. 12 to No. 18; but for specialpurposes either larger or smaller ones may be used. These wires are first prepared by dipping or running them through a composition or preparation composed of shellac dissolved in alcohol, one quart, and sugar of lead dissolved in spirits ofturpentine, one ounce, applied cold,;for the purpose of preservin g them from corrosion 'or deterioration. It will be found advantageous to dip or treat these wires a second time after the iirst has dried. The wires a are then placed in glass tubing b, and to prevent undue breakage of the glass tubes it will be best to anneal them. Each wire has a separate tube, b. These tubes can be obtained in lengths of six feet, so that two of them will equal al wooden section twelve feet in length but the length of these glass sections is not material, as a number can be used for one exterior section. The interior joinings of these tubes b may be covered with short sections of larger glass tubing; but in practice this has not been found essential. When the wires are properly prepared they are placed in the wooden or main sections with the glass tubing b of the same length as the wooden, and the wires are left to project a sufficient length for connecting. The exterior or main sections are then placed on end, or with one end at a sufficient elevation to allowuthe composition hereinafter described to run in, and the lower end is to be stopped to prevent the composition from running through and out.

The composition used for this purpose (marked O in the drawings) is composed of rosin,ten pounds 5 linseed-oil, one quart 5 muttontallow, three and one-half pounds; sugar of lead (ground in oil,) one-half pound; and beeswax, one-half pound. This composition is quite fluid when hot and quite firm when cold, and does not shrink in cooling. It is poured in when hot enough to flow into and fill the spaces in the glass tubes not lled by the wires within them, and also all of the space in the exterior or main tubing around them, so that the whole is a compact mass when cold, which supports the interior of the main tubing and each wire in its glass tube and all of the glass tubes in the exterior or main one.

When not made a part of the claims, I do not limit myself to the described compositions, as others having similar quantities may be used in place thereof; but I have described the best composition for these purposes known to me.

By this arrangement the sections A can be previously prepared ready for use with the wires in place.

In order to lay them in a properly prepared trench, the sections A are laid with the under part of the boxing B applied to one of them. If metal tubing is used, the boxes B will be slid back onto one en d and slipped across the opening when the wires are connected. The main sections are laid with their ends about two inches apart, or separated a suflicient distance to permit of the connecting and soldering of the wires together. Either' at the factory, or before connecting the wires, a larger glass tube, c, is placed over one end of each tube Zr and crowded back into themain tubin 7hen the wires are all tied these tubes c are drawn out over the tie, as shown in Figs. 2 and 4. Thecasing or boxing B is then completed, when the composition Gis poured in hot at the hole D until the whole is filled, as shown in Fig. 2, and, being poured in hot, the spaces made by the tubes c in crowding them back are filled, and as the tubes c do not closely it the tubes b the composition also iiows into them and fills all interior spaces, thus making a full and complete continuation of the insulation at all junctions of the sections in a manner not liable to interruption, which can be continued to any desired length of line. The sections A can be easily removed or taken up for repairs in case of injury by lightning or from other cause.

The composition for the interior ofthe main tubes may be varied in the proportions of the ingredients, as the principal eii'ect of such variation is to make the compound harder or softer. The proportions stated for this and also for the other compounds are those which are deemed best, and which have been found best in actual practice.

The test-box E is made of wood or other suitable material and about five feet high above the ground. The height and size in cross-sections, however, are not material, and are placed along the line as they maybe needed. A suitable backboard is placed within thebox, and to this board I attach, by suitable means, a series of short tubes, d, made preferably of brass, which are provided with binding-screws c. There is one tube, d, for each line of wire in the main tube A, sections or ends of which are turned up, as shown at A', Fig. 6. The wires a, for this distance above the main tube A and to the brass tubes d, are covered with wool saturated with or made into a compact mass with the composition used for llin g the main tubes, to preserve their insulation and to prevent injurious contact. The wires a may be similarly coated in other exposed places or situations. In the test-box E a ground-wire, g, is provided, which is connected with the tube f, so that in testing any wire may be taken from the tubes d and be IOO IIO

placed in the tube f for a ground-connection. The ends of the main line and of side leads taken therefrom are turned up similarly to thc ends A' of Fig. 6. The brass tubes d and fare glass-lined to insure complete insulation.

This construction ot' an underground line enables me to use short bored sections of wood, also light iron or lead pipe, as unequal setting or slight bending after it is laid does not injure '1o it in use, even if some of the small glass tubes should break, which, however, they are not liable to do; and by using lead pipe injurious induction between the wires is prevented, as stray or excessive currents are passed to the ground by the lead.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows:

1. The combination, with'one or more electrical conducting-wires, suitably insulated, of

an inclosing-tube of wood coated or coated and zo saturated with a composition of tallow, lard, and rosin, substantially as described, for increasing the insulating character of the wood, preserving and rendering it impervious to water, and thereby preventing access of moisture to the wire or wires.

2. The combination of the wire a with the separate glass tube b, having a non-conducting filling in addition to the iilling of a main inclosing-tube, substantially as described.

3. The combinatiomin atest-boX, of the glasslined tubes d and binding-screws e with a similar tube, f, and ground-wire g, substantially as specified.

GEORGE E. BONELL. Witnesses:

L. L.BoND, B. A. PRICE. 

